Point-of-sale (POS) terminals allow customers to pay for purchases using a wide variety of payment methods, such as with credit cards, debit cards, and gift cards and other prepaid cards, among others. Typically a terminal includes a card reader, a keypad, a display, additional reprogrammable keys surrounding the display, a printer, and a communication capability, e.g., a serial port, a parallel port, Ethernet, or a wireless transceiver. The communication capability links the terminal to a POS system, such as a PC-based cash register, in a retail establishment so that a customer can use a card to pay for goods or services provided in the establishment. The POS system typically processes the payment by communication with the terminal and with a payment processor.
A terminal provided with a wireless communication capability, and made sufficiently small and ergonomic to be handheld, can be carried by an employee of the retail establishment so that payments can be made at a location convenient for the customer. Such a portable terminal may be sized and shaped to fit in a waist-carried holster or to be hand-carried by the employee. The terminal may have an upper surface where the keypad, display, and reprogrammable keys are located. These keys and display can be more ergonomic in terms of ease of use and viewing, while maintaining a sufficiently small size and shape for portability, if other features of the terminal, such as the printer, use a lower, side, or rear surface, rather than the upper surface.